From her early days as beauty editor of Vogue, working alongside Grace Mirabella, to President of Ralph Lauren Fragrances, or building Tom Ford’s beauty business from scratch, Andrea Robinson has played a key role in modernizing the cosmetic business. As President of Revlon’s Ultima II brand, Andrea and her team developed “The Nakeds,” the natural makeup look, along with the first, long-wearing lipstick. Now Andrea is talking to women about skincare, makeup and aging in her book, Toss the Gloss.
“I watched The Graduate, again,” said Andrea Robinson. “People then were watching that movie and thinking Mrs. Robinson was so old, but she was only 39, but it doesn’t matter. People now say 50 is the new 40. I say 50 is the new 50.”
“SEXY DOESN’T HAVE AN AGE. AGING IS AN ASSET. WE JUST HAVE TO UNDERSTAND HOW TO USE IT.”
“Aging and confidence are two things that develop together. You know who you are by the time you’re 45 or 50, and you know how you want to present yourself.
“‘The Nakeds,’ was a line of 38 neutral shades of makeup that predated any of the companies that followed, including Bobbi Brown. It was an enormous success. This was in the late 80s and early 90s. The Nakeds was more than a color story. It became a social statement for women going into the workplace. At the time, women were wearing blue eye shadow, pink cheeks and orange lips. With The Nakeds, they could look like themselves, not this painted face, designed mostly by men and their fantasy of what women should look like. It was groundbreaking, and The Nakeds really took off.”
The late, Kevyn Aucoin, was just beginning his career as a makeup artist when Andrea and her team were working on The Nakeds. “I saw some photographs of his work and told my assistant, ‘Let’s book that kid from Louisiana for a shoot with Steven Meisel.’ I must give Steven credit. He really developed Kevyn. So when I was doing The Nakeds, I called Kevyn in to consult on the colors and the shades we used. He was a magician.”
In Andrea’s book, Toss the Gloss , she shares decades of her experience, step by step how-to’s, her favorite products and practical advice for women whose skin is changing:
- “Beauty comes from within: a very small makeup bag.”
- “If foundation is the perfect white T-shirt, then lipstick is the push-up bra.”
- “It’s time to take those sticky, tacky, lacquered tubes of high gloss and shine and toss them out!”
- “It’s okay to feel bad about your neck, and it’s also okay to do something about it.”
- “Get a hair color that complements your skin tone, a cut that complements your body type, and don’t get obsessed with what you can’t have.”
Stay tuned, because you’ll be hearing a lot more from Andrea Robinson. Her upcoming cosmetics line is named… Yep! You guessed it! “Mrs. Robinson!” It’s for women who believe sexy doesn’t have an age. So here’s to you, Mrs. Robinson! We eagerly await.
